The Painters Guild Fall Art Show & Sale was last weekend in St. Albert Place. I always look forward to this show, it is a tremendous tribute to all the talented artists we have in the city and the area. This year my husband and I attended together, as in we entered the building together and left the building together, however, we took different paths to view the show. This works for us, as what I stop to admire, at times will only get a passing glance from him, and of course vice-a-versa.

 This year as part of the show they had a “People’s Choice” award. Armed with a golf pencil and a slip of paper we were asked to pick our top three. What a great way to really immerse your visitors in the show. We both took our job very seriously and carefully deposited our votes in the draw box. Of course, the first question you ask each other as you leave the building is “What three did you pick?” We were both very surprised to discover that our second choice was actually the same, a partial nude painting of a woman....

During the third weekend in August, the lobby of St. Albert Place is transformed into a botanical paradise. This is when the St. Albert & District Garden Club holds their annual show.

The annual flower and produce show contains many of the same elements as a traditional fall fair. There are categories for flowers, vegetables, photography, preserves, floral design, creating vegetable sculptures, etc. Ribbons and prize money are awarded for first, second, and third place.

This year in celebration of St. Albert’s 150th there was a heritage section. This section showcased vegetables, herbs, flowers, etc. that was available and might have been grown by the Early Settlers in St. Albert at the time it was founded.

This event is nostalgic for me. When I was a child our entire family was involved in our town’s annual fall fair. We entered every category we could, and it was such a thrill to win a ribbon, and of course the $2.00 first prize was also pretty exciting. As we grew older and less excited about this ‘boring’ aspect of the fair, my mother stayed involved in the fair by becoming a judge…us kids only attended the fair because of the midway. However, becoming a parent changes things, and after being gone for several years, we were transferred back to my hometown for a two year period. It was perfect, my children were the right age to bake cookies and create vegetable sculptures. I was once again able to re-live the thrill of winning a ribbon through my children.

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